The role of the Dispute Settlement Body in the dispute settlement process

Abstract

Let me start by describing exactly what the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) is. The Dispute Settlement Body is in fact the General Council, the supreme decision-making body of the WTO in the absence of the Ministerial Conference, which convenes to discharge the responsibilities provided for in the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU). The DSB is composed of the representatives of all Members. It has its own Chairman, usually with the rank of ambassador, who is elected from among the representatives of Members at the beginning of the year to preside over the proceedings of DSB meetings. The DSB also has the power to establish rules of procedure as it deems necessary for the fulfilment of those responsibilities. To this effect, from the outset, the DSB developed working practices in order to handle practical matters such as submissions of notifications and circulation of dispute settlement documents at times when legal deadlines might fall on a WTO non-working day. However, it is important to note that the DSB's main role is to provide a framework to enable WTO Members to express their views and to provide their comments on the legal interpretations and reasonings of panels and the Appellate Body. Members are also free to raise any procedural matters related to the operation of the DSU; in that way, they maintain a certain influence over the process and exercise a certain amount of control in relation to what is being done by panels and the Appellate Body.